According to Zion Market Research, the global sports nutrition market accounted for U.S. $28.37 billion in 2016 and is expected to reach $45.27 billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR of around 8.1% between 2017 and 2022. 

“Once reserved for athletes and heavily dominated by whey protein, the protein market across applications including protein powder, ready-to-drink (RTD) and bars is continually evolving,” states Catherine Armstrong, Comax Flavors vice president of corporate communications. “Nutrition and performance products are now readily available and marketed to people with active lifestyles and we are seeing activity in plant protein. We wanted to better understand habits and usage among the general population in this market.”

Comax partnered with Amy Marks-McGee, Trendincite LLC, to manage the market research program; and Costello Creative Group, to translate the data into creative, fun and easy-to-read infographics. 

Additional Comax studies explore trends involving yogurt, alternative dairy products, sweet baked goods, bread and crackers. Below are just a few of the new study highlights. To request a copy of the complete Nutrition Intuition infographic, contact carmstrong@comaxflavors.com.

Nutrition & Performance Findings:

•    “Taste” is the number one driver of nutrition and performance purchases among all generations with (47%) of respondents citing it as the most important attribute

•    “Flavor” is the second most important attribute driver of nutrition & performance purchases with more than a third (35%) of respondents citing it

•    “Healthy” is the number one reason respondents use nutrition & performance with almost half or more citing it (45%) “Protein Powder Users,” (50%) “RTD Users” and (55%) “Bar Users”

•    “Organic/Non-GMO” is one of the top five “active ingredients” respondents look for in nutrition & performance products - (44%) “Protein Powder Users,” (46%) “RTD Users” and (41%) “Bar Users”

•    “Plant Protein” is one of the top five “active ingredients” respondents look for in nutrition & performance products - (34%) “Protein Powder Users,” (20%) “RTD Users” and (41%) “Bar Users”

•    “Chocolate” and “Vanilla” flavors are top performers among all respondents who consume nutrition & performance products

Protein Powder Findings - Among respondents who consume “Protein Powder”:

•    37% find “formula content” an important attribute in purchase intent

•    44% use it in “Dairy/Non-Dairy Preparations” while 31% use it in “Sweet Preparations” and 19% use it in “Savory Preparations”

•    About a quarter (26%) of respondents consume “Berry” flavors while 21% consume “Tropical” flavors

•    “Apple,” “Coffee” and “Peanut Butter” flavors are equally consumed (19%) by respondents

RTD Findings - Among respondents who consume “RTD”:

•    More than a quarter (29%) of respondents drink “Berry” flavors, which is most popular among the Silent Generation (38%), Gen X (35%) and Gen Y (30%) 

•    More than a quarter (28%) consume “Coffee” and “Tropical” flavors

•    Shy of a quarter (22%) of respondents drink “Citrus” flavors; Gen Y (31%) and Gen X (27%) are the heaviest users

Bar Findings - Among respondents who consume “Protein Bars”:

•    More than half (54%) of respondents consume “Peanut Butter” flavors; the Silent Generation (71%) are the heaviest consumer compared to Gen Y (38%)

•    Shy of a third (32%) of respondents consume “Indulgent” flavors

•    More than a quarter of respondents consume “Apple Pie” (29%), Berry (27%) and Coconut (27%) flavors

•    8% of respondents eat “Savory” bars

Protein Cookies/Brownies Findings:

•    A little more than a third (35%) of respondents consume “Protein Cookies/Brownies” 3-4 times per week

•    A little over a quarter (27%) of respondents consume “Protein Cookies/Brownies” 5-6 times per week

•    More than three-quarters (79%) eat “Chocolate,” which is the #1 universally consumed Protein Cookie/Brownie flavor among respondents, similar to Protein Powder, RTD Protein Drinks and Protein Bars

•    Half or more of the respondents consume the following flavors: Peanut Butter (64%), Cookies & Cream (61%), Oatmeal Raisin (52%) and Apple Pie (48%)

•    A third or more of respondents consume the following flavors: Birthday Cake (37%), Pumpkin Spice (36%), Snickerdoodle (35%) and Lemon Poppy Seed (32%)

Protein Chips Findings:

•    Shy of a third of respondents eat “Protein Chips” Everyday (31%) and 3-4 times per week (29%)

•    Protein Chips meet respondents’ demand for savory nutrition & performance products with more than half citing a variety of flavors: Cheese (77%), BBQ (69%), Savory (66%), Spicy (62%), Sweet (59%) and Salty (59%)

Generations defined: Gen Z born 1996 and later; Gen Y born 1977 to 1995; Gen X born 1965 to 1976; Baby Boomers born 1946 to 1964; Silent Generation born 1925 to 1945

For more information, visit www.ComaxFlavors.com.